When potential customers walk into our showroom, they come in with questions about countertops. Often, they have done some research, but they are still confused about what the difference is between quartz and granite. Different websites will give you conflicting information depending on who wrote the article.
If you happened to look on a quartz website, they might give information pertaining to granite that may not be completely accurate because they are, after all, representing quartz countertops, and they wouldn’t really like you to purchase granite.
We feel that educating consumers is the best way for them to make a decision. We just want them to buy their new countertops from us, be it granite or quartz! So here is my take on the difference.
1. Granite is a natural product from the earth. Quartz is a man-made product made from 93% crushed quartz mixed with 7% resin making it a very durable product.
2. Granite is porous, quartz is non-porous making quartz more stain resistant. I say resistant because I have seen stains on quartz, however the stain was removed by a cleanser type product. Granite is sealed, making it stain resistant as well. There are 15 year sealants available making granite maintenance free.
3. Both products will most likely have a visible seam. Because quartz is typically more uniform, the seams may seem less visible than granite seams.
4. We notice that all the quartz colors will fade when exposed to direct sun over time. Some granite colors will fade more than others.
5. When working with samples of granite, the slabs may be very different from the sample. Quartz samples will be almost identical to the slab.
6. Pricing for quartz countertops is more expensive than granite. I find this to be a surprise to people more than anything else. I think that since quartz is a man made product people expect it to be less expensive.
Hopefully this helps folks out there understand the difference between the two products so you can make an informed decision.
